Stats

Lifespan

A few weeks

Size

Small

Diet

Herbivore

Activity

Diurnal

Social

Solitary

Biome

Temperate grassland

Range

The Americas

Movement

Flight

Breeding

Egg-laying

Defense

Speed

Status

Common

About

A small but pugnacious butterfly of lawns and gardens across the Americas, whose males flash brilliant orange wings to defend flower patches from rivals far larger than themselves. The curved black stigma (sex brand) on the male's forewing releases pheromones mid-chase, making it one of the few butterflies known to court and fight at the same time.

Life cycle

1. 1.
   egg

   A tiny ribbed egg laid on the underside of a host-plant leaf, hatching within days.
2. 2.
   caterpillar

   A voracious caterpillar feeds and molts through several instars, growing rapidly.
3. 3.
   chrysalis

   A chrysalis hangs sealed and still while the body remodels into a winged adult.
4. 4.
   butterfly

   A winged adult with full scales and coloration, ready to fly and mate.

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Taxonomy

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Arthropoda

Class

Insecta

Order

Lepidoptera

Family

Hesperiidae

Genus

Hylephila

Species

Hylephila phyleus